Akram Afif performed a never-seen-before card trick celebration after he scored the opener for Qatar in their much-anticipated Asian Cup final clash against Jordan.
The 27-year-old, who plays his club football for Qatar Stars League side Al Sadd, won a penalty in the 22nd minute of Saturday's clash after being brought down by Abdallah Nasib,
Afif went on to net his sixth goal of the tournament with a composed finish from the spot, and in a moment that has since gone viral online, Qatar's number 11 celebrated with a magic trick.
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After running over to the camera, he collected a card from his sock before shaking the card with his hand to reveal an ‘S’ – which was a tribute to his wife, according to beIN Sports.
It's safe to say Afif's unique celebration inside the Lusail Stadium soon went viral.
Here's how fans on social media reacted to the celebration.
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One said: "A magic trick celebration is insane," while another commented: "Doing magic tricks in an international final, what happened to taking your shirt off and celebrating wildly? We used to be a real sport."
A third wrote: "Out of all the cameras in the stadium he chose the slow-mo camera to pull this off," while a fourth added: "Akram Afif with one of the coldest celebrations of all time."
As a result of his goal against Jordan in the final, Afif is currently tied with Iraq's Aymen Hussein as the tournament's leading scorer as Qatar look to defend their title.
First-time finalists Jordan, meanwhile, beat overwhelming favourites South Korea on their way to the final, as goals from Yazan Al Naimat and Musa Tamari sealed a 2-0 win.
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Jordan manager Hussein Ammouta was delighted with the semi-final victory. “We are growing more ambitious with every win and we must seize the initiative to win [the final],” he said.
Topics: Qatar
Jack Kenmare